Flames of Transformation: The role of fire in cremation practices

TY - JOUR

T1 - Flames of Transformation

T2 - The role of fire in cremation practices

AU - Sørensen, Tim Flohr

AU - Bille, Mikkel

PY - 2008

Y1 - 2008

N2 - This paper explores the transformative power of fire, its fundamental ability to change materialworlds and affect our experience of its materiality. The paper examines material transformationsrelated to death as a means of illustrating the powerful property of fire as a materially destructive yetsocially generative and creative element. While fire has been widely discussed archaeologically as atechnological element, and recently coupled with the social and symbolic powers of pyrotechnology,we focus on the sensuous staging of fire in disposal practices. The paper employs two case studiesfocusing on cremation burial from Bronze Age (c.1300–1100 BC) and modern Denmark in order todemonstrate widely different sensuous engagements with fire and its experiential significance in acremation context.

AB - This paper explores the transformative power of fire, its fundamental ability to change materialworlds and affect our experience of its materiality. The paper examines material transformationsrelated to death as a means of illustrating the powerful property of fire as a materially destructive yetsocially generative and creative element. While fire has been widely discussed archaeologically as atechnological element, and recently coupled with the social and symbolic powers of pyrotechnology,we focus on the sensuous staging of fire in disposal practices. The paper employs two case studiesfocusing on cremation burial from Bronze Age (c.1300–1100 BC) and modern Denmark in order todemonstrate widely different sensuous engagements with fire and its experiential significance in acremation context.

M3 - Journal article

SN - 0043-8243

VL - 40

SP - 253

EP - 267

JO - World Archaeology

JF - World Archaeology

IS - 2

ER -